It’s from the side of the maple clan known as the Shantung group, Acer truncatum ... seedlings of Shantung maples in 1999. The original tree is still growing at the nursery.

There’s a lot to love about maples. The ancient trees are a signature of our place. Big-leaf maple (Acer macrophylla), a giant that grows to 100 feet tall with a span of 50 feet, and vine maple (A.